In Dubai, the index rose 0.1 per cent as Shuaa Capital added 2.2 per cent and GFH Financial was flat.

Late on Tuesday, GFH confirmed that it was in talks on a possible merger with Shuaa, although Shuaa has still not issued any statement.

District cooling firm Tabreed fell 2.1 per cent as it went ex-dividend.

In Bahrain, Khaleeji Commercial Bank surged 4.5 per cent in very thin trade.

GFH said it would raise its stake in the bank to 55.38 per cent from 46.97 per cent by acquiring shares owned by Emirates Islamic Bank.

Qatar's index edged down 0.1 per cent as Mazaya Qatar Real Estate Development sank 4.5 per cent after saying annual net profit fell to 74.6 million riyals from 112.7 million riyals in the previous year.

Editor : A.H.M Moazzem Hossain

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